SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft exploded minutes after its launch from Texas on Thursday, marking the second consecutive failure this year in Elon Musk’s Mars rocket program as it attempted to deploy mock satellites.
Social media was abuzz with several videos capturing the fiery debris streaking across the dusk skies near south Florida and the Bahamas, following Starship’s disintegration in space. The incident, broadcast live by SpaceX, showed the spacecraft spinning out of control with its engines shutting off.
This mishap follows closely on the heels of another explosive failure just over a month ago, marking the company’s seventh failed Starship flight. These consecutive early-phase mission failures, areas previously navigated with success by SpaceX, signal significant setbacks for Musk’s accelerated program goals this year.
The towering 403-foot rocket system was launched around 6:30 PM ET from SpaceX’s extensive Boca Chica, Texas facilities. Its Super Heavy first-stage booster managed a successful return landing as planned.
However, shortly after, the live feed from SpaceX showed the upper stage of Starship spinning in space. A graphic displayed several engines shutting down before SpaceX confirmed it had lost communication with the spacecraft.
Dan Huot, speaking for SpaceX during the livestream, commented, “Unfortunately, this happened last time, too, so we’ve got some practice now.” Notably, the rocket carried no astronauts on board. The livestream was cut off soon after the launch, and SpaceX did not specify where the debris might land.
SpaceX later reported online that the vehicle underwent a “rapid unscheduled disassembly,” and communication was subsequently lost.
The team at SpaceX is now coordinating with safety officials and plans to analyze flight data to pinpoint the cause of the explosion, stating, “Success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will offer additional lessons to improve Starship’s reliability.”
Following the scattering of debris across the Caribbean, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) briefly halted commercial flights at Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, and Orlando airports due to concerns over “space launch debris,” impacting flights until at least 8 PM ET. Additionally, flights were rerouted around the Turks and Caicos area.
The FAA has initiated an investigation into the incident and has stipulated that SpaceX must resolve the cause of the failure and obtain agency approval before Starship can undertake another flight.
This recent failure, Starship’s first launch attempt since its January space explosion, casts a shadow over Musk’s vision for the rocket’s future. He envisions a rocket capable of deploying larger satellite arrays and transporting humans to the moon and Mars.
The previous Starship failure in January, which occurred eight minutes into flight, resulted in an explosion that scattered debris over the Caribbean islands. The explosion was traced back to a fire near the ship’s liquid oxygen tank.
Following that incident, the FAA imposed a temporary halt on commercial flights and mandated an investigation by SpaceX. The company has since adjusted the fuel lines and fuel temperature settings.
